JP2002262252A - Video information input/output device and recording medium for video information - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To protect the copyright of an information provider and to ensure the image quality of a range satisfying a user in the case of inputting HD(high definition) information and outputting the information to an external device. SOLUTION: The resolution of the received high definition(HD) video information is converted into that of interlace or progressive scanning video information with number of scanning lines of standard definition(SD) and is outputted. A recording medium records control information to limit the resolution at an output. The resolution is selected depending on the charging imposed on a user. Thus, the profit of the copyrighter and that of the user are kept compatible.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an input / output device for controlling the resolution and the like in order to protect the copyright of input video information when the video information is input and output to an external device. Further, the present invention relates to a video information recording medium suitable for performing such control.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the field of television broadcasting and information software services, digital broadcasting and HD (High Definition) are required.
ition: high definition) Broadcasting has started. As a result, not only is it possible to increase the number of channels of broadcasting, but also the quality of video and audio information has been greatly improved. A high-quality information software corresponding to this will appear in the future.

[0003] Although the quality improvement by digital technology in recent years has been effective in various devices, new problems have arisen with it. In particular, when a digital recording system is used in a device that records and reproduces information, high-quality dubbing software is circulated in places where the copyright holder does not know, and there is a problem that profit cannot be returned to the right holder. This has been a problem when consumer digital audio recorders emerged, and measures have been considered in various fields. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-146378 discloses that when information is recorded, the information is intentionally degraded and recorded.

[0004]

In the case of video information recording equipment, there is a method of encrypting a digital output signal so that only a specific user can view the digital output signal, or a method of multiplexing control data to prohibit unauthorized recording. It is developed and has high confidentiality. The most problematic is the analog output signal. The analog output has limited means even if a similar method is applied, and is easily broken. For this reason, when outputting high-quality information to a certain extent, particularly in analog output, it is effective to protect the copyright of the copyright holder by deteriorating the quality before outputting.

However, from the user's point of view, the deterioration should be limited to a certain limit, and it is unsatisfactory to view the video obtained by the HD broadcast at a resolution of, for example, half or less. is there. Based on these conditions, there has been no concrete proposal for a suitable method.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a video information input / output device which performs quality control particularly for recording and reproducing and outputting high-quality video information so as to protect both the rights of copyright holders and the interests of users. It is to provide a recording medium suitable for this.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a video information input / output device according to the present invention receives video information transmitted from outside or inputs video information reproduced from a recording medium. A resolution conversion circuit for performing predetermined signal processing and outputting to an external device and converting the resolution of input video information into video information having a different resolution, and controlling conversion conditions of the resolution conversion circuit. And a control circuit for controlling the resolution conversion circuit to change the resolution of the output video information according to the charging condition when the apparatus is charged for outputting video information from the apparatus. I did it.

[0008] When the input video information has about one scanning line,
When the information is high-resolution information of interlaced scanning with 000 lines, the control circuit controls the operation of the resolution conversion circuit in three stages according to charging conditions, and performs resolution conversion when the charging amount is the most expensive. Without this, it outputs high-definition video information of interlaced scanning with about 1000 scanning lines, and if the billing amount is the next most expensive, the video information of progressive scanning with about 500 scanning lines is output. When the billing amount is the lowest, the data is converted and output as interlaced video information with about 500 scanning lines.

Alternatively, the control circuit controls the operation of the resolution conversion circuit in two stages according to a charging condition. If the charging amount is expensive, the resolution conversion is not performed and the number of scanning lines is reduced to about 10
When the number of lines is 00, the image information is output in the form of high-definition interlaced video information. If the billing amount is low, the information is converted into interlaced or progressive scan video information with about 500 scanning lines and output.

[0010] Further, the recording medium according to the present invention, in which the video information is recorded, is configured such that when outputting the video information reproduced from the recording medium to a specific device, the resolution of the reproduced video information is limited to a predetermined level. The specified resolution restriction information is recorded together with the video information.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In one embodiment of the present invention,
For example, information transmitted from an information providing unit such as a broadcasting station or information software recorded on a recording medium or the like is multiplexed with control information for instructing whether or not to limit the resolution particularly for analog output as described above. I do. For example, multiplexing can be basically performed by 1 bit, for example, when 0 is applied and 1 when not applied. Due to the limitation of the resolution and the like, HD information is stored in an SD (Standard Definit), which corresponds to a conventional television system such as NTSC and PAL.
ion (standard definition) This can be changed to information that is on par or close to it.
In addition, when the output once having been subjected to the resolution limitation is displayed on a display, the scanning line is interpolated and the like.
It is considered that the number of scanning lines is changed to the same level as the D information and displayed. Further, as a guideline of the resolution limit when HD information is output from the apparatus in the form of analog output, the number of pixels per frame is set to about 500,000 pixels, which is equivalent to the current SD information. This corresponds to, for example, 480 (vertical (number of scanning lines) × horizontal 853 pixels) or 540 (vertical) × 960 pixels (horizontal) in terms of a standard conventionally used.
In addition, the user is charged for display, and the resolution is released when the user is responded. Alternatively, according to the payment amount, the cancellation is performed in a stepwise manner. The case where the resolution restriction is mainly performed on an analog output will be described. However, the resolution restriction may be performed on a digital output as needed.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the entire video information transmitting / receiving system of the present invention, in which information is transmitted / received by broadcasting and recorded / reproduced. This system employs a method of limiting the resolution and the like according to the present invention. 1 is an information providing station (transmitting device) such as a broadcasting station, 2 is a relay station, 3 is a receiving device (input / output device), 4 is a first recording and reproducing device, 5 is a display, and 6 is a second recording and reproducing device. It is. The present invention can also be applied to a case where one or both of the first recording / reproducing device 4 and the second recording / reproducing device 6 do not exist, and are within the category.

An information providing station 1 such as a broadcasting station transmits a signal wave modulated by information via a relay station 2 such as a broadcasting satellite. Of course, other transmission methods such as cable transmission, telephone line transmission, and terrestrial broadcast transmission may be used. This signal radio wave received by the receiving device 3 on the receiving side is suitable for recording into the first recording / reproducing device 4 or the second recording / reproducing device 6 after being demodulated into an information signal as described later. The recorded signal is sent to the display 5. Here, the user can directly view the information content. Also,
Among the recording / reproducing devices described above, at least information reproduced by the first recording / reproducing device 4 is provided to the display 5 via the receiving device 3, and the original information such as video and audio is viewed. Information reproduced by the second recording / reproducing device 6 can also be provided to the display 5 via the receiving device 3 as necessary. When the information recorded in advance on the removable recording medium is provided, the reproduction operation from the first recording / reproducing device 4 or the second recording / reproducing device 6 to which the information is attached is performed.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the information providing station 1 such as a broadcasting station in FIG. 11 is a source generation unit, 12 is an encoding circuit that performs compression by the MPEG method or the like, 13 is a scramble circuit, 14 is a modulation circuit,
Reference numeral 15 denotes a transmission antenna, 16 denotes a management information adding circuit, and 17 denotes an input terminal.

Information such as video and audio generated by the source generator 11 including a camera and a recording / reproducing device is compressed by an encoding circuit 12 so that the data can be transmitted with a smaller occupied band. The signal is encrypted by the scramble circuit 13 so that only a specific viewer can view the signal, modulated by the modulation circuit 14 into a signal suitable for transmission, and then relayed from the transmission antenna 15 to a broadcast satellite, for example. It is emitted as radio waves toward the station. At this time, the management information adding circuit 16 adds information such as the above-described restriction information such as resolution, copy control information, and current time. Although not shown in FIG. 1, for example, request information is input from the input terminal 17 via a telephone line or the like. This is utilized in a system that determines information to be transmitted in response to a viewer's request, such as video on demand.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the receiving device (input / output device) 3 in FIG. 301 is an RF / IF conversion circuit, 302 is a demodulation circuit, 303 is an error correction circuit, 304 is a descrambling circuit for decrypting a signal applied to a signal, 305 is a first demultiplex circuit, 306 is an input / output terminal, 307 is a second demultiplexing circuit, 308 is a decoding circuit, 309 and 310 are output terminals, 311 is a control circuit of the entire receiving device 3, 312 is an information management circuit, 313 is a charging information management circuit, 314 is a modem (MODEM ) A circuit, 315 is an output terminal, 316 is an input terminal, and 317 is a command input circuit. In the figure, the solid line indicates the flow of main information such as video and audio, and the dotted line indicates the flow of control signal information between components.

First, the flow of information such as video and audio indicated by solid lines will be described. A radio wave from the relay station 2 such as a broadcasting satellite is input to the RF / IF conversion circuit 301. Here, the radio wave in the RF band is the IF band (Intermediate F
The signal is converted into a signal of a fixed band independent of the reception channel, and the demodulation circuit 302 demodulates the modulation operation performed for transmission. Further, after a code error occurring during transmission is detected and corrected by the error correction circuit 303, the descrambling circuit 304 decrypts the code. Thereafter, it is sent to the first and second demultiplexing circuits 305 and 307. In particular, in the case of digital broadcasting, a plurality of information is usually multiplexed on one channel by a method such as time division or spread spectrum. The demultiplexing circuit separates only desired information from this. The reason why the first and the second and the two are provided is not only to enable so-called back program recording, but also to remove information that is not worth recording in the first demultiplex circuit 305. In other words, the information often includes additional information such as a weather forecast and a program broadcast schedule.
Since it is not worth recording and seeing it later, it is possible to remove it here.

The output of the first demultiplexing circuit 305 is supplied to an input / output terminal 306, and exchanges signals with the first recording / reproducing device 4 connected thereto. I / O terminal 3
Reference numeral 06 denotes a bidirectional terminal for exchanging information to be recorded / reproduced with the first recording / reproducing device 4 by, for example, digital data. Of course, one information line does not necessarily have to be bidirectional, and may be composed of a plurality of unidirectional information lines. The information transmitted from the descrambling circuit 304 or the information reproduced by the first recording / reproducing device 4 from the input / output terminal 306 is connected to the second demultiplex circuit 307. Is selected, and the decoding circuit 308
Is input to

In the next decoding circuit 308, the data compression of the moving image which has been performed before transmission is decoded and, if necessary, converted by the method according to the present invention so as to be suitable for output from the apparatus, as will be described later. Then, it is output to the output terminal 309 and sent to the external display 5. The information to be output to the output terminal 310 is provided to the second recording / reproducing device 6 connected thereto as needed. This device is, for example, made for conventional SD information, and is a general-purpose analog recording VTR for NTSC, PAL, etc.
Is a typical example. In order to enable recording and reproduction, if the information is, for example, HD information, the decoding circuit 308 down-converts the information to the SD information format and supplies the converted information to the output terminal 310.

Next, a control signal indicated by a dotted line will be described. The control circuit 311 determines from the above 301 to 305, 3
Control signals are transmitted and received between the components 07 and 308, and the entire receiving device 3 is controlled so as to perform a desired operation. Among them, the one given to the decoding circuit 308 is
As will be described later, the operation for controlling the resolution and the like is also controlled.

The information management circuit 312 supplies management data when the control circuit 311 performs control, as required.
For example, the information of the receiving contract is managed here.
When the user designates a channel to be viewed, the designation is inputted from the input terminal 316 and the command input circuit 317
Is sent to the control circuit 311 via the. Control circuit 311
Requests the information management circuit 312 for reception contract information. If we determine that there is a contract with the channel specified by the user,
A control signal is sent to each of the above-described components to instruct a receiving operation of the corresponding channel. The information management circuit 312 includes:
Timer reservation information by the user is managed. At the time when the viewing is reserved, the control circuit 311 sends a control signal to each of the above-described components to start the receiving operation.

The control circuit 311 also exchanges control signals with the charging information management circuit 313. The operation of the charging information management circuit 313 according to the present invention, particularly the charging method will be described later.
This information is provided to modem circuit 314. Here, the information is output to an output terminal 315 as information suitable for transmission to a communication transmission line such as a telephone line. Thereafter, the information is sent to a copyright holder, a financial institution, or the information providing station 1 shown in FIG. 1 via a communication transmission path so that a prescribed amount can be obtained from the user. Of course, the communication transmission path may be wireless.

The relay station 2, the first recording / reproducing device 4, the display 5, and the second recording / reproducing device 6 shown in FIG. 1 are those that relay information radio waves and those that record / reproduce or display information. Since the present invention can be understood simply by recognizing that, the internal operation will not be described in detail. It is to be noted that the first recording / reproducing apparatus 4 records the compressed or streamed digital bit stream as it is, and it is suitable to use a digital recording method which is mainly used in the recent or coming years. The exchange of
As described above, it is preferable to carry out digitally. Further, the recording medium is not limited to a tape, and various kinds of media such as a removable disk such as a digital video disk and a disk built in a device such as a hard disk are possible. When handling HD information, the display 5 is, for example, 1
Those having the number of scanning lines of 000 or more are most suitable.
The second recording / reproducing device 6 is not particularly limited, but may be an analog recording device corresponding to SD information as described above.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control information signal according to the present invention.
The information is generated and transmitted by the management information providing circuit 16 of the information providing station 1 and is recorded on a recording medium by a recording / reproducing device, particularly the first recording / reproducing device 4 of FIG. For example, in the case of a tape medium, it is sufficient that one piece is recorded on one recording track, but it is naturally recorded in a fixed relation with information data such as video and audio, so that it can be easily separated at the time of reproduction. .

The program number 100 indicates the number of the program on the medium. The sector information 101 is
This is the number of a sector obtained by dividing the program into predetermined units. The division may be performed in fixed units, for example, in units of 2 kbytes, or may be performed in fixed units of information, for example, in units of division when encoding. The number may be assigned in the program or may be a serial number for the entire recording medium. Information such as a recording time 106 to be described later is added in units of this sector. The time information 102 indicates how long the recorded portion has passed since the start of the program. The type 103 indicates attribute information such as whether the program is sold, rented, self-made, or broadcast.

The copy control 104 indicates whether the information can be recorded on a medium. Copy Never, Copy One Gener
ation, Copy No More, and Copy Free.
In this order, recording duplication is prohibited, recording duplication is permitted for only one generation, recording duplication is permitted for one generation, and no further duplication is permitted, and recording duplication is permitted. Copy No More is Copy One Generation
Is used to mean that no more duplication is allowed when recording the signal. Copy Never, Copy One Generatio
The designation of n, Copy Free is determined by the copyright holder such as the creator of the information.
Therefore, it can be transmitted with 2-bit information.

The APS 105 stores copy control information (APS; Analogue Pro
and controls whether copying is possible by adding a pseudo sync pulse to the analog video signal or the like. Thus, separate copy control can be performed on the signals at the input / output terminal 306 and the output terminal 310 in FIG.

The recording time 106 records, for example, the time given by the management information providing circuit 16 in FIG. The recording at the recording time 106 is performed, for example, in sector units. The viewing period 107 is added when a time limit is set for viewing information recorded on a medium. This is also often provided by the management information providing circuit 16 described above. For this time limit, the previous recording time 106 may be used.

Reference numeral 108 denotes a broadcasting system used by the information, such as the HD information or the SD information. 109 is
This is for determining whether to limit the resolution and the like used in the present invention. In the case of broadcasting, it is often provided by the management information providing circuit 16, but when information software is provided by a recording medium. Shall be recorded by the right holder at the time of creation. The specific restriction method will be described in detail later,
For example, in the case of a high-resolution video signal such as HD information,
Control is performed such that the resolution is reduced and output is not performed as it is. Also, here we will mainly describe the case of limiting this resolution etc. to analog output,
Similar control may be applied to the digital output without being limited to this. In this case, the control may be performed based on not only the resolution but also whether security can be ensured by, for example, encryption.

The user identification 110 is recorded when a user-specific code is used so that the information recorded on the medium can be reproduced only by the same device or the same user as when recording. The encrypted information 111 is used when decrypting the data during reproduction when the data is encrypted and recorded on the recording medium. Since the information itself has a large data amount, a code number may be recorded, and the corresponding information stored in advance in the reproducing apparatus may be used.

The above is recorded at relatively small time intervals, such as for each frame of a video or for a fixed amount of data as required. Of the components described above, in particular, 103 to 1
Those indicated by 09 are often added in advance on the transmitting side. If the information software is provided on a recording medium, the right holder records it at the time of creation. The configuration of the control information signal as shown here can be applied to the present invention.
The example shown by is only an example, and various things such as a configuration, a recording position on a medium, and a frequency can be applied. Also, not all of the contents are essential, and some of them may be omitted. Of course, the order is not limited to this.

FIG. 5 shows a control information signal on a recording medium,
This is a schematic drawing of a recording position of information data such as video and audio. In the figure, (a) is suitable for a tape medium. In this case, it is desired that a block of the control signal is provided, for example, for each recording track. Therefore, for each track, a block of control information is arranged in, for example, a header portion thereof prior to information such as video and audio. (B)
Is suitable for digital video discs and the like.
In this case, it is desired that each sector has a certain amount of information. Therefore, each sector is arranged in its header section or the like. (C) is suitable for a hard disk or the like. In this case, the information such as video and audio and the control information are preferably recorded at separate positions on the disk so that the entire control information can be read within a short time at the time of startup.

Next, a specific method for limiting the resolution and the like will be described. First, we will describe where in the system this is done. In FIG. 1, the first recording / reproducing device 4
Is a consumer digital VTR, the display 5 is HD compatible, and the second recording / reproducing device 6 is an SD compatible consumer analog VTR.

Here, the operation of a conventional device already on the market will be described. FIG. 3 which is received by the receiving device 3 and included therein
When the information given to the display 5, that is, the information currently being broadcast, is displayed via the descrambling circuit 304, the second demultiplexing circuit 307, and the decoding circuit 308, the resolution is not limited. Was displayed. That is, the HD information is displayed at a high resolution, and the SD information is displayed at the same resolution as before. The signal is also received by the receiving device 3 and recorded and reproduced by the first recording / reproducing device 4 via the first demultiplex circuit 305 in FIG. When the information given to the display 5 via the circuit 308, that is, the information once recorded in the device, is displayed, the following was performed. If the copy control information 104 in FIG. 4 is Copy Free at the stage when the information is input to the receiving device 3, the information is recorded and reproduced as it is without any limitation on the resolution and the like, and is displayed. If "Never Copy" is indicated, the first recording / reproducing apparatus 2 does not perform a recording operation, and of course, cannot reproduce and display. The same applies to the case where Copy No More is indicated by information from information software, and the first recording / reproducing apparatus 4 does not perform a recording operation. Copy One
If it is Generation, when recording with the first recording / reproducing device 4, this is rewritten as Copy No More and recorded.
When the image is displayed on the display 5, the image data is output from the output terminals 309 and 310 with the resolution etc. being limited by the decoding circuit 308 and displayed.

The method of this restriction is as follows. In some cases, the resolution simply refers to the horizontal resolution, but this can be limited by resampling or filtering using a low-pass filter or the like. On the other hand, the vertical resolution is achieved by reducing the number of scanning lines. The specific method is described later,
For example, the number of interlaces is limited to 480 to 540. Since the number of effective scanning lines of the SD information is originally about this level, there is no need to limit the number of effective scanning lines.
Since there are about 0 interlaced signals, restriction is imposed. This restriction operation can be provided as a function to the decoding circuit 308 in FIG. 3, for example. The information may be analog at the output terminal 309 as well as at the output terminal 310, and may be operated before output to this terminal.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. The control information indicated by the resolution restriction information 109 in FIG. 4 is added to the information received by the receiving device 3. This is, for example, added by the management information adding circuit 16 in FIG. 1, and may be 1-bit information such as 0 when restricting, and 1 when not restricting. Here, the resolution restriction information 1
In the case where 09 requests the restriction, both the information currently being broadcast and the information once recorded on the apparatus via the first recording / reproducing apparatus 4 are restricted. This limitation is due to resampling and filtering in the horizontal direction, reduction in the number of scanning lines, etc., and the number of pixels is about 500,000 pixels per frame, for example, 9 pixels in the horizontal direction.
The number of pixels is about 60 pixels, about 540 vertical lines, and the like. When the image is further displayed on the display 5, the conversion is performed again from this point, and for example, the number of scanning lines is apparently doubled, and the number of interlaces is reduced to one.
080 lines may be displayed, and all the scanning lines of the display 5 may be used. Note that the resolution restriction information 109 is detected by the control circuit 311 in FIG. 3, and a predetermined restriction operation is performed by the decoding circuit 308 based on this.

A further feature of this embodiment is that, when necessary, for example, when the number of scanning lines is reduced to once every 540 lines,
It is to convert to progressive (non-interlaced) instead of interlaced. This has at least two meanings. One is, of course, to provide a certain stop in the degradation of image quality due to the operation of limiting the number of scanning lines. As described above, if the image quality is comparable to that of the conventional SD information as a result of the restriction, the user who has received the HD information will be unsatisfactory and will be disadvantaged unilaterally. This disadvantage can be reduced by making the pixel progressive, even though it is about 500,000 pixels per frame. The other one is the operation to limit the number of scanning lines,
The re-conversion operation to 1080 interlaces is simplified, and will be described later in detail.
These limiting or reconversion operations can also be provided as functions to the decoding circuit 308.

Further, whether to convert to interlaced or progressive may be determined based on the amount of billing described later. Further, even when the resolution restriction information 109 requests a restriction, the restriction may not be made based on the amount of billing. These are determined by, for example, whether the amount paid is commensurate with the rights of the copyright owner. These are a charging information management circuit 313 and a command input circuit 3
17 can be realized by sending a control signal to the decoding circuit 308 from the judgment of the control circuit 311 which exchanges information with both of them.

FIG. 6 shows the decoding circuit 3 in FIG.
FIG. 28 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a digital camera 08. 6, the terminals 309 and 310 may be the same as those shown in FIG. 30801 is an input terminal, 30802 is a decoding circuit for compression operation such as MPEG performed before transmission, 30803 is an input terminal, 30804
Is an up converter, 30805 is a down converter,
30806 is a first switch, 30807 is a second switch, 30808 is a limiting circuit such as a resolution, 30809
Is an APS signal adding circuit, and 30810 is a third switch.

The input terminal 30801 has an output of the second demultiplexing circuit 307 shown in FIG. 3, for example, information currently being broadcast or the first recording / reproducing device 4 inputted from the input / output terminal 306. Is provided.
This is decoded by the decoding circuit 30802, and the compression operation performed by, for example, MPEG before transmission is restored. Among them, at least information such as video and audio is provided by the up converter 30804 and the down converter 3.
0805, the first switch 30806, and the second switch 30807.

A control signal from the control circuit 311 shown in FIG. 3 is supplied to an input terminal 30803. The result of detecting the APS 105 from the control information shown in FIG.
The signal is supplied to the S signal adding circuit 30809. Broadcasting system 10
8 is provided to the first switch 30806, the second switch 30807, and the third switch 30810. Further, information indicating the contents such as the resolution limitation determined by judging from the limitation information 109 such as the resolution and the charging situation is given to the limitation circuit 30808 such as the resolution.

First, a case will be described in which the information is determined to be SD information based on the broadcast system 108 in FIG. At this time, the first switch 30806 and the second switch 30807 are connected to the third switch 30 on the lower side (denoted by b in the figure) in FIG.
Reference numeral 810 selects the upper signal (a in the figure) on the drawing and connects it to the next component. This information is an interlaced signal of about 480 to 540 scanning lines (hereinafter referred to as 480i to 540i).

Of the outputs of the decode circuit 30802, the one sent from the output terminal 310 to the external second recording / reproducing device 6 passes through the second switch 30807 as it is and is given to the APS adding circuit 30809. A in FIG.
When the PS 105 detects a request for applying and outputting the copy control information APS to the analog recording device, the APS addition circuit 30809 detects the request by, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-2885.
No. 82, it is impossible to record normal information in the external second recording / reproducing circuit 6 by adding a pseudo synchronizing signal or the like.

Among the outputs of the decoding circuit 30802, the one sent from the output terminal 309 to the external display 5 is first converted into an interlaced signal (hereinafter, referred to as 1080i) of about 1080 scanning lines by the up-converter 30804. Thus, the number of scanning lines apparently corresponds to HD information. Thereafter, the signal is supplied to the output terminal 309 via the first switch 30806 and the third switch 30810.

Next, a case where the information is determined to be HD information will be described. This information is, for example, 108
This is about 0 interlaced signals (1080i). At this time, the first switch 30806 and the second switch 308
07 is the third switch 30 on the upper side (a in the figure) of the drawing.
810 selects a signal on the lower side (b in the figure) on the drawing and connects it to the next component.

Among the outputs of the decoding circuit 30802, the one sent from the output terminal 310 to the external second recording / reproducing device 6 is first reduced in the number of scanning lines by the down-converter 30805, for example, to output signals of 480i to 540i. After doing
The signal is supplied to the output terminal 310 via the second switch 30807, and further by adding an artificial synchronizing signal in the APS adding circuit 30809 as required.

Of the outputs of the decode circuit 30802, the one sent from the output terminal 309 to the external display 5 passes through the first switch 30806 as it is, and is given to a limiting circuit 30808 such as a resolution. For example, when the HD information is analog-outputted from the apparatus based on the restriction information 109 such as the resolution shown in FIG.
8, the horizontal direction is resampled or filtered to limit it to, for example, about 960 pixels, and in the vertical direction, for example, an interlace signal (hereinafter, referred to as 540i) or a progressive signal (hereinafter, referred to as 540 pixels) having about 540 scanning lines.
P) can be converted and restricted. Thereafter, the signal passes through the third switch 30810 and is supplied to the output terminal 309. In particular, in the case of using a progressive signal, it is possible to prevent a decrease in image quality that makes the user feel dissatisfied as compared with the case of using an interlaced signal, and to simplify the operation of converting the number of scanning lines as described later.

Whether to limit the resolution or the like is determined by the control circuit 311 in FIG. 3, and is controlled according to a control signal input from the input terminal 30803. For example, output is limited to (a) no limit such as resolution, (b) limited to 540P,
(C) It is assumed that a limit can be selected in three steps of 540i, and the amount of the charge is determined in accordance with the three steps. Generally, (a) is the most expensive, followed by (b) and (c). (C) may be free. The user selects one of them, and the command is input from the input terminal 316 in FIG.
Via the control circuit 311. The limiting circuit 30808 such as a resolution determines the operation according to the selected content. The selected contents are also transmitted to the billing information management circuit 313, and are transmitted from the modem circuit 314 and the output terminal 315.
Sent to copyright holders, financial institutions or information providers,
The user is charged the amount corresponding to this. Of course, the selection of the output is not limited to the above three steps, but may be, for example, two steps (a) and (b).

If the resolution is not required even if the information is HD information, or if the resolution is not limited in accordance with the billing, a resolution limiting circuit 30808 is provided.
Then, the input information is output as it is without limiting the resolution.
This can also be realized by selecting the input information on the a side of the third switch 30810.

The output terminals 309 to 480i, 540i, 54
When information of 0P (or less than 720P) is output and input to the display 5, it is often up-converted on the display 5 and converted into a format of high definition information for display. This up-conversion process can also be performed by the resolution limiting circuit 30808.

A DA for converting information into analog information
Although the conversion circuit is not described so far, the location is not particularly limited. If the display is connected by analog information, it is connected between the third switch 3810 and the output terminal 309, and further, the APS addition circuit 30809 and the output terminal 3
10 or the like. Of course, in the former case, it may be outside the output terminal 309 and in front of the display 5. If it is connected to the display 5 by digital information, it is naturally inside the display 5. Even in this case, especially when the display 5 is provided with an analog output, there may be a case where a restriction such as resolution is required here. Next, in order to determine whether the information is the HD information or the SD information, there are several methods in addition to the method of determining the broadcast information 108 in FIG. For example, the determination can be made based on the cycle of the horizontal synchronization signal.
The limit circuit 30808 for limiting the resolution or the like may be placed between the first demultiplex circuit 305 and the input / output terminal 306 in FIG. 3 in addition to the position shown in FIG. In this case, when a restriction such as resolution is requested, the restriction is applied before recording on the first recording / reproducing device 4. However, in that case,
Since the resolution of the recording information itself is also limited, the merit of the user is reduced.

FIG. 7 shows a decoding circuit 30 different from FIG.
8 shows a configuration example. Here, the upconverter 3080
4A is different from that of FIG.
06 does not exist. Here, information output to the output terminal 309 is as follows. The SD information whose output of the decoding circuit 30802 is 480i to 540i passes through the third switch 30810, and then is output from the up-converter 30804.
The signal is converted into 1080i information by A and given to the output terminal 309. The HD information whose output is 1080i from the decoding circuit 30802 is converted into information of 540i to 540P by a limiting circuit 30808 such as a resolution as necessary, and then the third switch 30810 and the up-converter 38
04A, converted to 1080i information and output terminal 30
9 given. In this case, the display returns to the original 1080i. However, if the display is once set to 540i to 540P, the corresponding resolution is restricted. In this case, the up converter 30
It is also possible to separate 804A and incorporate it into the display 5, for example.

In FIGS. 6 and 7, when the restriction by the restriction circuit 30808 such as the resolution is converted into only the interlace signal such as 480i to 540i, the down converter 30805 can be shared with this.

Next, a method of limiting the resolution and the like will be specifically described. As described above, the restriction in the horizontal direction can be achieved by resampling, filtering, or the like. Here, the remaining vertical direction, that is, the conversion of the number of scanning lines will be described with reference to schematic drawings.

First, the method of converting the number of scanning lines shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 will be described. FIG. 8 schematically shows the case where the information of 1080i is converted into 540i having half the number of scanning lines, and FIG. 9 schematically shows the case where the information once converted to 540i is returned to 1080i again. In the figure, (a) shows the odd field of the two fields, and (b) shows the even field, and both of them constitute one frame. In the figure, the vertical direction indicates the relative position of the display in the vertical direction. The horizontal lines correspond to the scanning lines, and are denoted by AB,..., GH. The information of the first 1080i is indicated by a solid line, a dotted line after conversion to 540i, and a two-dot broken line after conversion to 1080i again.

When converting the left 1080i into the right 540i in FIG. 8, focusing on the vertical relative positions before and after the conversion, in the odd field shown in FIG. 8A, M = (A + B) / 2 N = (C + D) / 2 Expression (1) and the average value of the scanning lines A and B sandwiching the scanning lines M at equal intervals may be calculated. On the other hand, in the even-numbered field shown in (b), it is preferable to bring scanning lines at the same position as T = H U = J (2), that is, to thin out every other scanning line.

540i on the right side in FIG. 9 (same as the right half in FIG. 8)
When re-converting to the 1080i on the left side, also paying attention to the relative position before and after, in the odd field shown in (a), re-B = (3M + N) / 4 re-C = (M + 3N) / 4... (3) and considering the distance from the two scanning lines sandwiching them,
A weighted average will be taken. On the other hand, in the even-numbered field shown in (b), re-H = T re-I = (T + U) / 2 (Equation (4)) Perform value operation. As described above, particularly in the case of re-conversion, the trouble of changing the arithmetic expression for each field and for each scanning line is recognized.

The expressions (3) and (4) are replaced by the expressions (1) and (2).
As can be understood from the above, even if the same 1080i information is obtained, before and after this conversion, re-B = (3A + 3B + C + D) / 8 re-C = (A + B + 3C + 3D) / 8 re-H = H re-I = (H + J) / 2 formula (5) In the same scanning line, information originally belonging to another scanning line is mixed, and the vertical resolution is lost. This is the function of limiting the resolution in the vertical direction. Further, since filter characteristics are different for each line and each field, there is a problem that image quality deterioration such as flicker is added.

Next, the method of converting the number of scanning lines shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 will be described. FIG. 10 shows a case where 1080i information is converted into 540P having half the number of scanning lines.
This is a diagram schematically showing a case where information converted to 540P is returned to 1080i again. At the stage of 1080i, (a) shows the odd field of the two fields, and (b) shows the even field, and both of them constitute one frame. However, at the stage of 540P, there is no distinction between even and odd fields, and one field becomes one frame. The first 1080i information is indicated by a solid line, a dotted line after conversion to 540P, and a two-dot broken line after conversion to 1080i again.

When converting 1080i on the left side into 540P on the right side in FIG. 10, focusing on the vertical relative positions before and after the conversion, for example, the ratio of the distance between A and B after conversion is 1: 3.
It is. Therefore, in the odd field shown in (a), M = (3A + B) / 4 M ′ = (3B + C) / 4 (Equation 6) On the other hand, in the even field shown in (b), T ′ = (G + 3H) / 4 U = (H + 3I) / 4 (7)

When re-converting 540P on the right side (same as the right half in FIG. 10) to 1080i on the left side in FIG. 11, focusing on the relative positions before and after again, in the odd field shown in FIG. = (M + 3M ') / 4 Re-C = (M' + 3N) / 4 Expression (8) On the other hand, in the even field shown in (b), re-H = (3T ′ + U) / 4 re-I = (3U + U ′) / 4 (Equation 9)

As can be seen from the above, in the process of conversion and re-conversion between 1080i and 540P, a weighted average of 3: 1 may be obtained for the pixels sandwiching the converted scanning line. That is, there is an advantage that the operation formula does not need to be changed for each field or each scanning line as in the above-mentioned conversion to 540i once, and there is no troublesome operation.

Here, again, as can be seen by substituting equations (6) and (7) into equations (8) and (9), re-B = (3A + 10B + 3C) / 16 re-C = (3B + 10C + 3D) / 16 re-H = (3G + 10H + 3I) / 16 Re-I = (3H + 10I + 3J) / 16 ... In the same manner as in the equation (10), information which was originally in another scanning line is also mixed in the same scanning line, and the vertical resolution is lost. Have been done. This is the function of limiting the resolution. However, there is an advantage in that the image quality is not converted into a progressive image when the image is once converted, so that the image quality does not cause the user to be dissatisfied.
In addition, each of the converted scanning lines has a weighted average of 3: 10: 3 of the original three scanning lines, so that flicker for each scanning line can be reduced, and no flicker between fields due to processing occurs. There is.

In the above description, the limitation on the resolution and the like when information is output from the apparatus has been mainly described for the case where the limitation is applied to the analog output. However, the present invention is also applicable to the digital output. It goes without saying that the same applies.

When the output signal of the receiving apparatus 3 is output as a signal of 540i in which the resolution is limited, the conversion shown in FIG. 8, that is, the equations (1) and (2) are converted into the signal of 540P. Is output as the conversion shown in FIG.
Equations (6) and (7) may be applied to the limiting circuit 30808 such as the resolution shown in FIGS.

When the output signal of the receiving device 3 is output in a high-definition signal format after limiting the resolution or the like, the conversion shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, that is, the equation (5) or FIG. The conversion shown in FIGS.
0) may be applied to the limiting circuit 30808 such as the resolution. If the processing shown in equations (5) and (10) is used, two conversion processes can be performed at once, and signal processing can be performed efficiently. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the circuit block configuration is shown, but it may be realized by an arithmetic signal processing using a microprocessor.

Further, in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10, and 11, the case where the calculation is performed using the information of two lines is described. For example, the calculation is performed using the information of four lines. For example, a decrease in vertical resolution can be reduced. The present invention is not limited to the filter coefficients shown in Expressions (1) to (10). If a higher-order filter is used, the reduction in the vertical resolution can be further reduced.

The present invention is particularly effective when the receiving device 3 and the display 5 shown in FIG. 1 are connected by analog signals. When connected by digital signals, the receiving device 3
The resolution is not necessarily limited by the present invention when the display 5 and the display 5 are in the same housing, but even in this case, when an analog signal is output to the outside, it is effective to apply the present invention to this. , In that category.

FIG. 12 shows another example of the configuration of the receiving device (input / output device) 3 according to the present invention. The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is suitable for use in, for example, a general home, and is configured so that cash is not required on the spot even if the user is charged. FIG. 12, on the other hand, is suitable, for example, when placed in a living room of a lodging facility. Here, a deposit detection circuit 319 is added.
At accommodations, etc., package software is broadcasted on the in-house broadcasting, and some are supplied for a fee. In such a case, it is effective when providing the image by limiting the resolution according to the amount. Cash is input from the input terminal 318, and the money amount information (may include free) detected by the money detection circuit 319 is transmitted to the control circuit 311. The decoding circuit 308 limits the resolution corresponding to the money amount. Is done. This is suitable for the owner of the lodging facility to collect cash, but in preparation for collection by an external organization such as the above-mentioned broadcasting, the charging information management circuit 313 is provided.
And the modem circuit 314 may be provided similarly to FIG.

This package software is generally provided to the above-mentioned owners and general consumers in a form in which information data such as video and audio is recorded in advance on a recording medium such as a disk or a tape. The control information signal shown in FIG. 4 may be recorded together with the information data such as video and audio. In particular, if the restriction information 109 such as the broadcast system 108 and the resolution is recorded, it is possible to perform the same charging at the time of reproduction as in the above-described embodiment and to limit the resolution accordingly. Broadcasting system 1
Regarding 08, although the case of package software is different from the case of broadcasting, it is better to describe the same broadcasting system as the used television system.

When the operation of limiting the resolution and the like and the charging conditions for the same are not uniformly determined for all the information, it is preferable to add a charging condition to each piece of information. For example, a plurality of types of billing conditions are prepared, each is assigned a code number, and this is added to the information control signal of FIG. If the receiving device 3 in FIG. 3 detects this and notifies the charging information management circuit 313 from the control circuit 311, different charging can be performed for each information.

[0072]

As described above, according to the present invention, when a large amount of information such as high-definition (HD) video information is output as analog information, a certain limit such as resolution can be imposed. This makes it difficult to make an accurate copy, and protects the rights of the copyright holder and the like.
In addition, when the conversion to the progressive is used, the deterioration of the image does not cause user dissatisfaction, and, at the time of conversion, does not need to change the arithmetic expression for each field or scanning line, There is an effect that there is no troublesome operation and there is little occurrence of flicker and the like. These resolution restrictions can be released when the user pays a reasonable price according to the charge, and the degree of the restriction can be relaxed, which has the effect of bringing benefits for both the copyright holder and the user.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the entire video information transmitting / receiving system of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of an information providing station (transmitting device) 1 in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a receiving device (input / output device) 3 in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a control information signal according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing recording positions of a control information signal and video information data on a recording medium.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a decoding circuit 38 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing another configuration example of the decoding circuit 38 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a method of converting the number of scanning lines 1080i to 540i.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing a method for re-converting the number of scanning lines from 540i to 1080i.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a method of converting the number of scanning lines 1080i to 540P.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating a method of re-converting the number of scanning lines from 540P to 1080i.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a receiving device (input / output device) 3 in FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Information providing station (transmitting device) 16 Management information adding circuit 108 Broadcasting system 109 Restriction information such as resolution 2 Relay station 3 receiving apparatus (input / output device) 306 input / output terminal 308 decoding circuit 30801 input terminal 30802 decoding circuit 30803 input terminal 30804 upconverter 30805 ··· Downconverter 30806 ··· First switch 30807 ··· Second switch 30808 ··· Resolution limiting circuit 30809 ··· APS signal adding circuit 30810 ··· Third switch 309 ················· Output terminal 311 control circuit 312 information management circuit 313 charging information management circuit 314 modem (M DEM) circuit 315 output terminal 316 input terminal 317 command input circuit 318 input terminal 319 payment detection circuit 4 first Recording / reproducing device 5 Display 6 Second recording / reproducing device

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Atsushi Yoshioka 292, Yoshida-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture F-term (Reference) 5D053 FA13 FA15 FA17 FA21 FA22 FA23 GB05 GB37 JA21 LA07 LA14 5C063 AC01 BA04 BA06 BA09 BA14 5C064 BB01 BC16 BC20 BC22 BC23 BD04

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A video information input / output device which receives video information transmitted from the outside or inputs video information reproduced from a recording medium, performs predetermined signal processing, and outputs the processed signal to an external device. A resolution conversion circuit for converting the resolution of the input video information into video information having a different resolution, and a control circuit for controlling the conversion conditions of the resolution conversion circuit; and outputting the video information from the device. A video information input / output device, wherein the control circuit controls the resolution conversion circuit to change the resolution of video information to be output according to a charging condition. 2. The video information input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the input video information includes high-definition interlaced scanning information having about 1000 scanning lines, and the output video information includes Is an image information input / output device characterized in that the number of scanning lines is about 500 and the information is interlaced scanning or that the number of scanning lines is about 500 and progressive scanning is included. 3. The video information input / output device according to claim 2, wherein the video information to be output includes information of interlaced scanning with 540 scanning lines or progressive scanning with 540 scanning lines. A video information input / output device characterized by the above-mentioned. 4. The video information input / output device according to claim 2, wherein when the input video information is information of a high-definition system of interlaced scanning with about 1000 scanning lines, the control circuit includes: The operation of the resolution conversion circuit is controlled in three stages according to the charging conditions. When the charging amount is the most expensive, the resolution conversion is not performed, the number of scanning lines is approximately 1,000, and the interlaced scanning high-definition image is used. If the billing amount is the next most expensive, it is converted to progressive scanning video information with about 500 scanning lines and output. If the billing amount is the cheapest, the number of scanning lines is reduced. A video information input / output device, which converts into about 500 interlaced video information and outputs the video information. 5. The video information input / output device according to claim 2, wherein when the input video information is information of a high-definition system of interlaced scanning with about 1000 scanning lines, the control circuit includes: The operation of the resolution conversion circuit is controlled in two stages according to the charging conditions. When the charging amount is expensive, the resolution conversion is not performed, the number of scanning lines is about 1,000, and the image information of the interlaced scanning high-definition system is used. An image information input / output device, wherein when the charge amount is inexpensive, the number of scanning lines is about 500 and converted into interlaced scanning or progressive scanning image information and output. 6. The video information input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit does not operate the resolution conversion circuit when the video information to be output is not an analog signal. Characteristic video information input / output device. 7. The video information input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the input video information includes control information for instructing whether or not to perform resolution conversion. The video information input / output device, wherein the control circuit does not operate the resolution conversion circuit when the information does not instruct to convert the resolution. 8. The video information input / output device according to claim 1, wherein the input video information is control information indicating whether or not the video information is information of a high definition system. A video information input / output device, wherein the control circuit does not operate the resolution conversion circuit when the control information does not indicate that the information is of a high definition system. 9. A recording medium on which video information is recorded, wherein when the video information reproduced from the recording medium is output to a specific device, the resolution of the reproduced video information is limited to a predetermined level. A video information recording medium characterized by recording resolution limiting information accompanying said video information. 10. The recording medium according to claim 9, further comprising control information indicating whether or not the video information is high-definition information. Recording medium.